Latest news with #Ziemba
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Public forum scheduled Thursday for Republican Luzerne County Council candidates
Apr. 9—Luzerne County's Republican Party is holding a public forum for all nine Republican county council contenders Thursday evening at the Luzerne County Community College. County Republican Chairman Gene Ziemba said Wednesday that county Controller Walter Griffith was instrumental in setting up the forum to help the party's voters learn more about the candidates. The forum will start at 5:30 p.m. and is scheduled to run until 8 p.m. at the college's auditorium (building 30), 521 Trailblazer Drive in Nanticoke. Ziemba said all nine Republican candidates have agreed to attend the forum: Thomas Dombroski, Ronald D. Knapp, Kevin Lescavage, John Lombardo, Jackie Scarcella, Brian Thornton, Stephen J. Urban, Rob Viars and Greg Wolovich. Republican and Democratic voters will each select five nominees in the May 20 primary election. Those 10 will then advance to the November general election, when all voters are free to select five of any affiliation. Ziemba will ask the questions during Thursday's forum based on submissions from audience members and online at gopforumquestions@ Candidates will have three minutes to respond. One question Ziemba personally wants to ask with a yes-or-no answer required: If a candidate is not among the five primary nominees, will he or she support the other nominees for the general election? Ziemba encourages voters to take advantage of the opportunity, saying it was organized to help them decide their selections. Democrats Seven Democrats are seeking that party's five nominations in the primary: Chris Belles, Steven M. Coslett, Tony Perzia, Johnny Price, Dawn Simmons, Emily Singh and Denise Williams. Democratic Chairman Thomas Shubilla said the party's candidates will discuss their platforms in a "meet the candidates night" May 8 hosted by the county Democratic Party, with a $10 ticket purchase required. The event will run from 5 to 8 p.m. at Keeley's Alehouse and Grille, 99 Division St. in Pringle. Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.
The National
02-04-2025
- Business
- The National
Gulf economies avoid harshest Trump tariffs but do not escape unscathed
Gulf Co-operation Council countries were largely spared from US President Donald Trump's sweeping tariff announcement on Wednesday, but the new levies' effects will be felt across the region. While GCC countries were part of a universal 10 per cent baseline tariff that Mr Trump announced on Wednesday, they avoided the much harsher reciprocal levies that he imposed on what White House officials had called the 'worst offenders'. More than a dozen countries were hit with reciprocal tariffs including China (34%) and the UK (10%). The EU was hit with a 20 per cent tariff. No Gulf country was on the list, and Israel (17%) was the only country in the Middle East to be hit. Reciprocal tariffs are due to go into effect on April 9. 'Given the global nature, the GCC probably got the best outcome they could've got,' said Rachel Ziemba, founder of Ziemba Insights. Mr Trump blamed part of the tariff debate on the US trade deficit, which was $1.2 trillion at the end of 2024. But the US had a trade surplus with the GCC last year. GCC members also have a relatively low tariff of 5 per cent on most goods, and their currency pegs to the US dollar helped to avoid criticism of manipulation. 'It's not a good outcome that universal tariffs are now part of how the US is financing itself, but [Gulf] leaders may take it as a partial success that they ended up in this lowest tier of most friendly countries in this new rubric,' Ms Ziemba said. And given the relatively low bilateral trade between the US and GCC members, the baseline 10 per cent tariffs will probably have a muted effect. Far more important to the GCC, Ms Ziemba said, are the indirect effects of reciprocal tariffs on the US economy and global trade flows. Tariffs are largely considered to have some inflationary affect while dampening growth. Latest forecasts from the US Federal Reserve showed it anticipates the largest economy in the world to grow by only 1.7 per cent this year. 'That's not a good thing for the countries in the region through the energy markets,' Ms Ziemba said. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were also down 751 points, or 1.8 per cent. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq-100 futures dipped 3 per cent and 3.8 per cent, respectively. And unlike in Mr Trump's first term, the latest set of tariffs come as inflation remains above the Fed's 2 per cent target. Fed officials are preparing to keep US interest rates elevated in the near term, which will keep borrowing costs higher in the Gulf due to the currency peg. Projections from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development last month also anticipated Mr Trump's tariffs would lead to lower growth, decreasing its global growth forecast from 3.2 per cent in 2025 to 3.1 per cent, and 3.0 per cent in 2026. 'The much bigger and more significant impact, which is negative, is the impact this trade war will have on the strength of the global economy, and hence on oil and gas demand. And it's got to be negative,' said Justin Alexander, director of Khalij Economics. Brent futures were down 1.75 per cent at $73.19 per barrel after Mr Trump's announcement. 'The big concern is the indirect impact in terms of how global trade flows change, how that impacts global growth,' Mr Alexander said. He said GCC countries are becoming well positioned as an open economy amid a more protectionist world, which makes them more attractive for investments. 'Broadly speaking, the Gulf is in a pretty good position compared to many other countries,' Mr Alexander said.
Al Jazeera
05-03-2025
- Business
- Al Jazeera
Trump's tariffs unleash ‘existential fight' for Canada
United States President Donald Trump has been true to his threats. On Tuesday, the Trump administration unleashed 25 percent blanket tariffs on Canadian imports, excluding energy, which was hit with 10 percent. Trump also slapped a 25 percent tariff on Mexico, and doubled China's tariffs to 20 percent. Royal Bank of Canada economists Francis Donald and Cynthia Leach have called this the largest trade shock to Canada in nearly a hundred years. Vina Nadjibulla, vice president of research and strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, referred to the tariffs as an 'existential fight' for Canada. Whatever the impact, economist all agree that a trade war between the US and Canada has begun. Canada announced 25 percent tariffs on 30 billion Canadian dollars ($21bn) worth of US imports in retaliation, and has said it will target another 125 billion Canadian dollars ($87bn) in goods in 21 days if needed. Mexico has promised to retaliate but has held off on any action until Sunday. China has announced the imposition of tariffs of 10 to 15 percent on certain US imports from March 10, and has also laid out a series of new export restrictions for designated US entities. It has also filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization on Tuesday's actions. Rachel Ziemba, an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, said the length of the tariff war remains 'in the court of the US'. But even if the blanket tariffs are revoked, more tailored tariffs are likely to persist and, in turn, cause inflation, which will hurt the economies of all the countries involved, Ziemba said. 'The economic impact will be significant on all sides as prices and inflation increase and businesses struggle to plan not just among these tariffs but also with other tariffs set to come,' Ziemba told Al Jazeera, referring to Trump's promise to impose reciprocal tariffs on all countries that apply levies to US products. 'It's very hard to say where this is headed,' Brett House, a professor at Columbia Business School, told Al Jazeera. 'There will be more tariffs on more countries before we see any rollback,' House said, adding, 'The Trump White House moves capriciously and changes its mind' frequently. House said that while negotiations are possible, Trump's stated reasons for slapping tariffs on Canada – to force it to stem the flow of undocumented migrants and fentanyl into the US – was based on 'absolutely false' data and, in fact, unauthorised migrants, guns and drugs have been increasingly moving in the opposite direction. Last month, Canada's CBC News reported that new data from the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) showed that there has been a growing influx of illegal US drugs and guns in the last couple of years. Drug hauls, for instance, soared from 3.8 million grams (600 stone) to 8.3 million grams (1,307 stone) in 2024 – a greater quantity than seized by their counterparts on the US side of the border. A 'profound shift' So, while everything is negotiable, Trump usually responds either to flattery or force, House said, and Canada has already tried flattery. 'The Prime Minister's office is now rightly shifting to force,' House said. Apart from its tariffs announced so far, Canada is also considering imposing tariffs on electricity exports to the US. More importantly, the situation has brought into sharp focus a question that has gathered steam in the face of threats by Ottawa's closest ally: What is the future of the Canada-US relationship? Some Canadian estimates have suggested Trump's tariffs could cost as many as 1.5 million jobs and send the economy into a recession. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday said that Trump was planning to cause the 'total collapse of the Canadian economy because that will make it easier to annex us'. 'This is not just about tariffs. The most unsettling and profound shift that we're witnessing now is in the relationship between Canada and the US,' Nadjibulla, the vice president of research and strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, told Al Jazeera. 'This is an existential fight and will require leadership from all the provinces and all the parties because no one knows what tomorrow holds.' Nadjibulla said it was unclear if the current tensions would be limited to trade or bleed into other areas such as foreign policy and defence and security arrangements. Even if there is a de-escalation between the two countries, she added, 'there's now a complete shift in paradigm' in how to view the relationship between the US and its traditional allies. 'It's clear we need to make our own national resilience … and need to make ourselves more capable for trading and working with others across the world,' she said. 'It's a wake-up call for Canada.' But it is a wake-up call for Mexico as well, as some Canadian premiers have suggested that Canada work out its own trade deal with the US to replace the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement. 'There is strength in numbers,' House said, and the 'strategy of any bully like the US president is to divide and ensure his counterparts are negotiating individually'. House warned that Ottawa's relationship with Mexico could be damaged by suggestions that Canada leave Mexico out of a future trade deal, which fits Trump's strategy of separating parties so they don't negotiate from a position of solidarity. On Tuesday, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told Fox Business that Trump will reach a middle ground with Canada and Mexico on tariffs and an announcement to that effect is expected on Wednesday. Whatever compromise is reached, it will not fully repair the damage done to the relationship between the North American trade partners, Ziemba said, especially as other tariffs on specific sectors are expected down the road. That said, 'the cost of a trade war is great and a truce is possible', Ziemba said.
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Economists say Trump tariff threats, DOGE job cuts are 'chilling' the economy
Economists say the uncertainty from President Donald Trump's tariff threats and mass layoffs of government workers are starting to have a 'chilling' effect on the U.S. economy. 'It's a very difficult business environment, because they can't plan for what their cost structure is going to be,' said Rachel Ziemba, an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. 'It's adding to investment uncertainty, and some people are holding back on investments.' Trump has so far imposed 10% tariffs on Chinese imports and says he'll impose additional 10%, plus 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico on March 4. Trump also says he will impose 'reciprocal tariffs' that match the duties other countries levy on the U.S. That comes on top of tariff plans on cars, semiconductors, steel and aluminum. Even if Trump doesn't ultimately move forward with all his tariff threats, the mere uncertainty has a chilling effect. MORE: 'Heartbreaking': USAID staffers clear out desks after DOGE layoffs 'If one of the inputs of your factory goes up by 25%, you might cut your production and say maybe we'll have to fire some people,' Ziemba added. Meanwhile, the Department of Government Efficiency's slashing of the federal workforce across the country 'also impacts consumption, because people are losing their jobs or are afraid of losing their jobs, so that might cause them to save more money,' Ziemba said. This week, The Conference Board's consumer sentiment survey found that it registered the largest monthly decline since August 2021. 'Views of current labor market conditions weakened. Consumers became pessimistic about future business conditions and less optimistic about future income. Pessimism about future employment prospects worsened and reached a 10-month high,' said Stephanie Guichard, senior economist for global indicators at The Conference Board. MORE: DOGE says it's now saved $65B in federal funds, but that's still impossible to verify 'Average 12-month inflation expectations surged from 5.2% to 6% in February. This increase likely reflected a mix of factors, including sticky inflation but also the recent jump in prices of key household staples like eggs and the expected impact of tariffs,' Guichard said. The Canada and Mexico tariffs would have a sweeping effect, since those are America's two biggest trading partners. It could raise prices at the grocery store and the gas pump. Ziemba also noted that the cost of cars could increase by several thousand dollars. 'Every time a car part crosses the border, 25% tariffs could be very onerous,' Ziemba said. 'We could see the cost of building a house go up quite substantially.' Economists say Trump tariff threats, DOGE job cuts are 'chilling' the economy originally appeared on
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Economists say Trump tariff threats, DOGE job cuts are 'chilling' the economy
Economists say the uncertainty from President Donald Trump's tariff threats and mass layoffs of government workers are starting to have a 'chilling' effect on the U.S. economy. 'It's a very difficult business environment, because they can't plan for what their cost structure is going to be,' said Rachel Ziemba, an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. 'It's adding to investment uncertainty, and some people are holding back on investments.' Trump has so far imposed 10% tariffs on Chinese imports and says he'll impose additional 10%, plus 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico on March 4. Trump also says he will impose 'reciprocal tariffs' that match the duties other countries levy on the U.S. That comes on top of tariff plans on cars, semiconductors, steel and aluminum. Even if Trump doesn't ultimately move forward with all his tariff threats, the mere uncertainty has a chilling effect. MORE: 'Heartbreaking': USAID staffers clear out desks after DOGE layoffs 'If one of the inputs of your factory goes up by 25%, you might cut your production and say maybe we'll have to fire some people,' Ziemba added. Meanwhile, the Department of Government Efficiency's slashing of the federal workforce across the country 'also impacts consumption, because people are losing their jobs or are afraid of losing their jobs, so that might cause them to save more money,' Ziemba said. This week, The Conference Board's consumer sentiment survey found that it registered the largest monthly decline since August 2021. 'Views of current labor market conditions weakened. Consumers became pessimistic about future business conditions and less optimistic about future income. Pessimism about future employment prospects worsened and reached a 10-month high,' said Stephanie Guichard, senior economist for global indicators at The Conference Board. MORE: DOGE says it's now saved $65B in federal funds, but that's still impossible to verify 'Average 12-month inflation expectations surged from 5.2% to 6% in February. This increase likely reflected a mix of factors, including sticky inflation but also the recent jump in prices of key household staples like eggs and the expected impact of tariffs,' Guichard said. The Canada and Mexico tariffs would have a sweeping effect, since those are America's two biggest trading partners. It could raise prices at the grocery store and the gas pump. Ziemba also noted that the cost of cars could increase by several thousand dollars. 'Every time a car part crosses the border, 25% tariffs could be very onerous,' Ziemba said. 'We could see the cost of building a house go up quite substantially.' Economists say Trump tariff threats, DOGE job cuts are 'chilling' the economy originally appeared on
